Showing posts with label Ivers and Pond. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ivers and Pond. Show all posts

Saturday 2 October 2021

Ivers & Pond

William H Ivers started making pianos in 1872 and clearly his pianos were substantial enough to earn a reputation for robust reliability. With Handel Pond the Ivers & Pond Piano Company was established in 1880 and based in Boston, Massachusetts while the factory was at Cambridgeport.

Known for their enviable build quality Ivers & Pond pianos were the choice of many colleges and schools and of course the private buyers who loved them for the elaborately striking and luxuriant casework. 


The insides of the pianos were no less well put together - said to be the equal in design and excellence of manufacture of any of the many big makers in America at the time. 


Their range of pianos went from baby grands up to the concert grand, Uprights of course and even player pianos. Universally respected and loved for their pleasing tone quality.


Ivers & Pond were consolidated into the Aeolian-American Corporation. The Ivers & Pond pianos continued to be made by Aeolian until the 1980s


The Aeolian Corporation was established by William Tremaine in 1887. He manufactured mechanical self-playing organs, later becoming the Aeolian Company sometime after 1895. Aeolian became a vast enterprise on the popularity of the player piano.   

Aeolian controlled many piano companies and was manufacturing pianos and organs in factories across America and in Europe. In 1932 it merged with the American Piano Corporation. Up until closing in 1985, Aeolian manufactured pianos using names from the many piano companies they controlled.


Ivers & Pond Serial Nos.


Piano Maker Directory


©Steve Burden



Thursday 13 November 2014

Ivers and Pond Piano Serial Nos.



Year
Serial No.
Year
Serial No.
1902
31000
1946
80000
1904
35600
1948
82000
1906
40000
1950
84000
1908
44000
1952
85600
1910
48100
1954
86200
1912
51800
1956
86550
1914
55000
1958
87873
1916
60000
1960
91014
1918
65000
1962
94370
1920
68900
1964
100442
1922
71000
1966
109800
1924
73200
1968
116000
1926
75700
1970
121900
1928
76500
1972
127200
1930
77500
1974
135600
1932
77900
1976
140900
1934
78300
1978
144000
1936
78600
1980
148000
1938
79400
1982
145300
1940
79900
1983
162845

These serial numbers can be used only as a reference point
An Exact date does not make a material difference to an assessment of a piano - a year or so out 120 years ago really is neither here more there.

The idea that 100% accuracy for all piano makers over a century ago is an interesting thought - but considering that all record keeping would be hand-written and kept in large ledger books, inaccuracies are likely. These records will be as reliable as the clerks whose job it was to keep them. The digital age of barcodes and scanned labels was still in the realm of science fiction. So we have to be content with our best guess numbers.

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